EFFECTS OF KELLER SYSTEM OF INSTRUCTION (KSI) ON STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT IN BIOLOGY

Abstract

The study investigated the Effect of Keller System of Instruction (KSI) on students'
Achievement in Biology. The design of the study was a quasi-experimental, nonequivalent
pretest and posttest control group design. 7,612 Senior Secondary School one
(SSS1) biology students in Abakaliki Education Zone of Ebonyi State formed the
population of the study. A sample of three hundred and thirty-two (332) students from
intact classes of four schools was used for the study. Four co-educational secondary
schools in Abakaliki Education were purposively sampled for the study. Two schools were
randomly assigned to the control group while the remaining two schools were assigned
to the experimental group. The experimental group was taught biology with KSI while the
control group was taught with the traditional method. The instrument used to collect data
for the study was Biology Achievement Test (BAT). The instrument was face validated by
experts in biology education, and measurement and evaluation. The reliability of BAT was
determined using the Kuder-Richardson formula (KR-20) and a Reliability index of 0.80
was obtained. The instrument was also subjected to estimation of stability using a testretest
procedure. The stability coefficient obtained for BAT was 0.95. The data obtained
from the study were analyzed using mean and standard deviation for answering research
questions while (ANCOVA) was used for testing the hypotheses. The findings of the study
revealed among others that: Keller System of Instruction (KSI) was significantly better
than the conventional teaching method in enhancing students’ achievement in biology;
there was no significant interaction between gender and teaching method on students’
achievement in biology. Based on the above findings, recommendations were made
which include biology teachers should introduce KSI in their lessons to enhance students'
achievement in biology; and educational trainings, workshops and conferences should be
organized where the teachers could be sensitized on the efficacy of KSI in enhancing the
students' achievement in biology.

Keywords: Achievement, Keller System of Instruction, Conventional Method of
Teaching, Biology.